I like to see direct clash (they say this, we say that), analysis with warrants (prefer our argument, because…), impact/implications (what the world looks like if we don’t do x), warrants for why your impact(s) hold(s) greater significance/is more likely/is the reason I should vote.

Make it clear to me, essentially writing the ballot for me will get you the win.

Ok with speed just be clear. Will put down my pen and stop flowing if you are going to fast.

Please be respectful during cross.

CONGRESS

Content

This form of debate is based around specific legislative solutions to problems. If you're on the Aff, you must demonstrate that there is a problem that is worth addressing, that the legislation at hand addresses said problem, and that this specific solution is the best one available. If you're on the Neg, you must either demonstrate that the problem doesn't exist, that the problem isn't worth solving, or that the legislation at hand will fail to fix the problem. Basically, you should be debating the legislation, not just the idea behind it.

Adapt to the round as best you can. If you give a constructive speech halfway through a bill or if you give the 4th consecutive Aff speech, I will get upset. Related to that, clash is vital. If you're giving anything other than the authorship speech, your speech should contain references to others.

Procedure

Congress is the only event in all of Speech & Debate where not everyone is guaranteed equal time, which is something I hate. As such, I try to run fast and efficient rounds to maximize the number of speeches. In a perfect world, everyone would get to give the same number of speeches. If I'm the Parli, don't ask if I'm ready. I am.

I only judge your speech and your performance on both sides of cross-ex. Everything else is just noise unless it's offensively bad. I judge PO's based on efficiency and strength in controlling the chamber. I don't need flair from the PO, but I do need a fast round.

On that note, don't run for PO unless you're good at it, not just because you think it'll help you break. I rank good PO's highly, but I tank the heck out of bad ones. In the interest of time, the PO should write the names and codes of the speakers on the wall (if we're doing that) after the speech starts instead of taking the time to make the speakers do it.

Do NOT use parliamentary procedure to gain an unfair advantage over your opponents. If the PO screws up and awards you a speech you're not supposed to get, yield. The worst offense is when someone tries to kill time with unnecessary motions to prevent someone from getting to speak.

Presentation

If you watch C-Span, I guarantee you're not going to see Chuck Schumer yelling and spreading about the need to "fail" legislation. This event is first and foremost about your debate content, but don't discount the value of professional and refined presentation. As a speech coach, I'll have a hard time paying attention to your content if I can't stop noticing how you trail off at the ends of sentences.

Experience: 4 years high school LD, ~2 years college policy at K-State. Current head coach at Pattonville High School.

Please add me to the email chain: paul.ambrose98@gmail.com

Overall, I'm alright with whatever, as long as you explain it well. I personally gravitate toward Ks and case turns, but if you're more a Politics DA + States CP kind of debater, go for it. My feedback may be more specific for kritikal arguments and K answers though.

I can understand speed relatively well, but I'd recommend slowing down for analytics, especially interps and standards in theory debates.

Affirmatives

Cool with policy or kritikal affirmatives. For policy teams, I find having small number of advantages with strong, specific internal links more compelling than throwing out 6 extinction impacts and going for the one that's dropped. Not a huge fan of lengthy pre-empt contentions, but a few strategic framing arguments can be very persuasive.

For K affs, I think you should have some connection to the topic and should probably have a stable advocacy statement. Specific, contextual explanation of the aff methodology is very important for me, especially when evaluating permutations and any presumption arguments.

DAs

Use them. More specific links are always better, but generic can work if you explain it well. Apart from links, I think impact calc is the most important part of disad debates and often gets undercovered (which is a shame).

CPs

Creative CPs are enjoyable, even when they border on cheating. I'm personally cool with states, consult, process cps, etc., but the neg doesn't get a free pass if there's a theory debate. PICs are rad, but word PICs are not rad (unless the word is in the plan text, which justifies it more IMO). Overall, the problem with most CPs isn't that they're cheating, it's that they're bad.

Ks

Love them. I'm personally most familiar with cap, set col, and anti-blackness, but don't assume I'll automatically know what you're talking about. The most important tips I can give are to contextualize your links to the aff (pulling lines from the 1AC is appreciated!) and to give a detailed explanation of what the alternative does. In general, I think the aff gets a permutation and gets to weigh the plan, but I can be persuaded otherwise, especially on the latter.

FW

I think framework is very strategic against kritikal affs, and all K affs should be prepared to have a FW debate. I tend to lean aff (like 55-45), but FW is definitely winnable. I'm more persuaded by substantive impacts and clash than I am by procedural fairness, but feel free to include fairness if you're gonna justify it.

I competed for four years in speech and debate (Congress) in high school and two years in Parliamentary debate in college.

I am a flow judge - I make my decisions based not only on who is best able to answer the opponent's points but also who is able to effectively weigh arguments. I can handle speed, but I believe spreading outside of Policy is not a good tactic. It is more important to me that you effectively crystalize arguments and address the big picture rather than getting lost in the weeds.

I really enjoy theory, but not for its own sake. You'll need to convince me it's relevant to the discussion.

Civility is extremely important to me - rudeness profoundly goes against the spirit of debate, so please be respectful to each other.

Other than that, have fun, and may the best debater win!

Having adjudicated a handful of congress speech debate competitions as a parent judge, here are a few factors I generally consider for evaluating participants:

* content and delivery (equal weightage)

* thoughtfully laid out and well researched arguments with strong analysis

* refutations in every speech after the first affirmative

* participation in CrossX and raise valid logical questions to challenge opposing arguments and strengthening their own argument.

Good luck and thank you for your time and effort!

A little bit about me: I coach for Millburn High School in New Jersey. I competed on the circuit in high school and college.

I do my very best to be as non-interventionist as possible, but I know some students like reading judge's paradigms to get a better sense of what they're thinking. I hope that the below is helpful :).

Overall: You can be nice and a good debater. :)

Here are some things to consider if I'm your Parliamentarian/ Judge in Congressional Debate:

- I am a sucker for a well-executed authorship/ sponsorship, so please don't be afraid to give the first speech! Just because you don't have refutation doesn't mean it isn't a good speech. I will be more inclined to give you a better speech score if you stand up and give the speech when no one is willing to do so because it shows preparedness.

- Bouncing off of the above bullet point, two things I really dislike while at national circuit tournaments are having no one stand up to give the earlier speeches (particularly in out rounds) and one-sided debate. You should be prepared to speak on either side of the legislation. You're there to debate, so debate. I'm much more inclined to rank you higher if you flip and have fluency breaks than if you're the fourth aff in a row.

- Asking the same question over and over to different speakers isn't particularly impressive to me (only in extreme circumstances should this ever be done). Make sure that you are catering the questions to the actual arguments from the speech and not asking generic questions that could be asked of anyone.

- Make my job easy as the judge. I will not make any links for you; you need to make the links yourself.

- Warrants are so important! Don't forget them!

- If you are giving one of the final speeches on a piece of legislation, I expect you to weigh the arguments and impacts that we have heard throughout the debate. Unless there has been a gross negligence in not bringing up a particular argument that you think is revolutionary and changes the debate entirely, you shouldn't really be bringing up new arguments at this point. There are, of course, situations where this may be necessary, but this is the general rule of thumb. Use your best judgment :).

- Please do your best to not read off of your pad. Engage with the audience/ judges, and don't feel as though you have to have something written down verbatim. I'm not expecting a speech to be completely flawless when you are delivering it extemporaneously. I historically score speeches higher if delivered extemporaneously and have a couple of minor fluency lapses than a speech read off of a sheet of paper with perfect fluency.

- Be active in the chamber! Remember, the judges are not ranking students based upon who is giving the best speeches, but who are the best legislators overall. This combines a myriad of factors, including speeches, questioning, overall activity, leadership in the chamber, decorum, and active listening (i.e. not practicing your speech while others are speaking, paying attention, etc.) Keep this in mind before going into a session.

- Please please please don't speak over the top of one another. This being said, that doesn't mean you have a right to monopolize the questioning time, but there is a nice way to cut someone off if they're going too long. Use your best judgment. Don't cut someone off two seconds after they start answering your question.

- I rank based on who I think are the overall best legislators in the chamber. This is a combination of the quality of speeches, questioning, command of parliamentary procedure, preparedness, and overall leadership and decorum in the chamber.

Let me know if you have any questions! :)

Here are some things to consider if I'm your judge in Public Forum:

- Please add me to the email chain if you have one: jordybarry@gmail.com

- I am really open to hearing almost any type of argument (except K's, please don't run K's in PF), but I wouldn’t consider myself a super techy judge. Do your thing, be clear, and enjoy yourselves!

- Please debate the resolution. It was written for a reason.

- It's important to me that you maintain clarity throughout the round. In addition, please don’t spread. I don’t have policy/ LD judging experience and probably won’t catch everything. If you get too fast/ to spreading speed I’ll say clear once, and if it’s still too fast/ you start spreading again, I’ll stop typing to indicate that I’m not getting what you’re saying on my flow.

- Take advantage of your final focus. Tell me why I should vote for you, don't solely focus on defensive arguments.

- Maintain organization throughout the round - your speeches should tell me what exact argument you are referring to in the round. Signposting is key! A messy debate is a poorly executed debate.

- I don't weigh one particular type of argument over another. I vote solely based on the flow, and will not impose my pre-existing beliefs and convictions on you (unless you're being racist, sexist, homophobic, antisemitic, or xenophobic). It's your show, not mine!

- Please please please don't speak over the top of one another. This being said, that doesn't mean you have a right to monopolize the questioning time, but there is a nice way to cut someone off if they're going too long. Use your best judgment. Don't cut someone off two seconds after they start answering your question.

- Be polite!

- Make my job easy. I should not have to (and will not) make any links for you. You have to make the link yourselves. There should be a clear connection to your impacts.

- Weighing impacts is critical to your success, so please do it!

Any questions, please feel free to ask! Have fun and good luck!

In Congressional Debate, I believe in clear, concise analysis. I expect clash, cited evidence, and rebuttal. I also appreciate students who immerse themselves in the debate and act as if their votes have an importance to their constituents back home. I understand that the end result is artificial, but for the moments in which you are in session, act like it matters.

I also expect that you will treat your colleagues with respect and avoid the parliamentary games which serve to prevent them from speaking. I've been around too long and can see through such tactics.

I debate currently at CSUF Until further notice

I debated for around 5.5 years and my background is mostly K args, but dont be afraid to run policy, I’m cool with both

Keep me on the chain por favor – ccarrasco244@gmail.com

If you have any questions for after the round or just need some help feel free to email, I’ll try to get back

general -

- I will distribute speaker points based off the accumulated performance from y’all, I like hearing arguments more if you truly believe in what you’re saying, especially debating Kritiks, be funny tho I’ll probably laugh, try to have fun and be the chill ones, try not to be toxic and even more so do not be violent, no -isms

- I will try to keep up on the flow but do not hyper-spread through theory blocks or any block for that matter, I will most likely not catch it

- be chill with each other but you can be aggressive if thats just your style, try not to trigger anxiety though in other debaters if you’re going too far

———- some more specifics ———-

I run and prefer Kritikal arguments, I am more comfortable listening to Settler Colonialism, Afro-Pessimism and Marxist literature, but that does not mean you can just spew jargon and hope to win, explain what your theories mean and your arguments, it will go a long way for your speaker points as well

Speaking of, i will be in the range of 27.5 - 29.9 for speaker points, I will try to be objective as possible but you do you, if you can do that well the speaker awards will come too

On T/FW, please make sure that your standards are specific to the round and are clearly spoken, I am substantially less convinced if you do not argue how that specific aff loses you ground and/or justifies a bad model of debate, but I will not vote it down for no reason, argue why those skills are good to solve the aff or provide a good model that sustains KvK debate in a better way than the aff justifies. Just don’t try to read your generic 2NC blocks, it gets more obvious the longer the debate goes on, do it well.

On Counterplans, try to have a net benefit, be smart with it, try not to have a million planks, having a solvency advocate is cool too, not much here.

Disads - do your link work as usual, I will vote on who does the better impact framing, just make sure you still got that link :) p.s for affs, just dont leave it at the end of the 2AC with a 2 second “they dont link isn’t it obvious”, please explain your answers and divide up time strategically

on K’s, I love good 2NC/1NR link stories, try not to just extend some evidence and answer 2AC args, evaluate why your links implicate the aff and how their specific aff makes something problematic. I dont mind a 2NC only the K with no cards, just make sure you’re not reading prewritten blocks, please be as specific as possible

Please stick to your arguments and embody them, just tell me what to evaluate at the end of the debate, I will very much appreciate if you can tell me how that happens, be revolutionary if you want to, I would probably enjoy the debate more.

Competitive History: I competed for four years in speech and debate, specializing in congressional debate. I am not new to debate and have a general idea about how the events should function. However, I will not put it past myself to get a “senior moment” when it comes to the individual idiosyncrasies of other events.

General Philosophy

Argumentation:

I have no problem with the usual debate jargon. I am not, however, an expert in all events and want to see clear signposting as a general rule of thumb. Also, I will try to be as objective as possible- #tabularasa- but that does not mean I will take unwarranted arguments on the face. An argument needs a claim in order for me to buy it and THEN I will take it as true.

When warranting your arguments, providing evidence to prove that something happens is not enough to qualify as a “warrant”, you need to construct, to at least a minor degree, some form of narrative storytelling to prove why a phenomenon is occurring for the reasons you provide. However, non-evidenced, properly warranted, arguments are no more legitimate than those that are not warranted and sourced.

For weighing, my philosophy is quite simple: do it. The standard calculus- magnitude, scope etc…- should be used but just throwing out the term does not qualify as weighing.

In terms of arguments that can be qualified as “offensive”/triggering/discriminatory, I will try to be as uninvolved in this as I can. Arguments should not just simply be called “offensive” and thus ignored in the round; the other team/debater has to prove that the argument is offensive. However, since ignorant arguments- by virtue of being ignorant- are quite easy to refute, you should not have a lot of problem doing so. There is a caveat to this, which are arguments that advocate for violence or portray a group as entirely evil and violent. Those kinds of arguments will be ignored.

Finally, this is really just for Congress kids, when establishing an argument as important, you need to explain what it’s like to be a member of the population you are talking about. While I probably know a bit about the topic, I want you to describe why life is so good or so bad for the group as a rationale for action.

Speaking: For PF/LD/CX rounds, speaking is only a detractor if it is impossible to properly discern what you are saying. Otherwise, your speaking- or lack thereof- will just harm efficiency and word economy, which will reflect in my argumentation comments.

Sources: I have no real source preference but there are exceptions. News sources are fine but don’t cite news sources with known bias or an insane amount of editorialization and op-ed writing. I won’t discount the source but an idicit is more digestible when you use these kinds of sources. I also want at least last name, year, publication when citing; you do not need to provide qualifications but they are a bonus if you use them.

Congress Specific

Speaking: I am a real big fan of the whole “role-playing” and your speaking should reflect that. Referencing people as rep./sen. Is not only respectful but is also part of the event. In addition, I really expect that you should have little to no fluency breaks, which I believe is more important than speed. If you have to speak slower to not trip up, do it. Also, really try to avoid the “Congress voice”, it just takes all the emotion and impact out of the debate.

Rhetoric: I like the usage. It is not required but benefits your arguments. The one detractor is using canned rhetoric- generalized statements that have really nothing to do with the debate but sound nice- or rhetoric from a google doc or, and this is probably the worst, using rhetoric from me, or any other competitors. Just please don’t.

P.O.-ing: Follow Roberts rules, make no mistakes, and go fast, you’ll get top three.

A little about me:

Currently coaching: Sage Hill School 2021-Present

Past Coaching: Diamond Ranch HS 2015-2020

I also tab more tournaments, but I keep up with my team so I can follow many of the trends in all events.

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I prefer all of my speakers to make sure that any contentions, plans or the like are clear and always link back to the topic at hand. You're free to run theory or K at your peril. I've heard great rounds on Afro-pessimism and bad rounds on it. I've loved a round full of theory and hated rounds full of theory. All depends on how it's done, and what the point of it.

I am a social studies teacher, so I can't unknow the rules of American government or economics. Don't attempt to stay something that is factually inaccurate that you would know in your classes.

Be respectful of all parties in the room - your opponent(s), your partner (if applicable) and the judge. Hurtful language is in not something I tolerate. Pronouns in your names are an added plus.

Speaking clearly, even if fast, is fine, but spreading can be difficult to understand, especially through two computers. I will say "Clear" if I need to. In an online format, please slow down for the first minute if possible. I haven't had to listen to spreading with online debate.

For LD, I don't mind counterplans and theory discussions as long as they are germane to the topic and as long as they don't result in debating the rules of debate rather than the topic itself. In the last year most of my LD rounds have not been at TOC bid tournaments, but that doesn't mean I can't follow most arguments, but be patient as I adjust.

Truth > tech.

*It's work to make me vote on extinction or nuclear war as a terminal impact in any debate. That link chain needs to be solid if you're doing to expect me to believe it.*

In PF, make sure that you explain your terminal impacts and tell me why I should weight your impacts vs your opponents' impacts.

WSD - I have been around enough tournaments to know what I should hear and I will notice if you're not doing it well. Thinking global always. Models should always be well explained and match the focus on the round. Fiat is a tricky thing in the event now but use it as you see fit.

As a former congressional debater, I've been in your shoes. When judging, I take the unpredictability of congressional debate into account but expect the best debaters to remain unphased by the chamber's unanticipated direction. I have listed the key aspects that make or break a debater in my ranks.

1) Refutation. I do not rank debaters (with the exception of sponsorship/authorships) unless they have complete refutations. This means you fully reiterate the previous speaker's argument and offer a clear counterpoint from either a logical or evidentiary basis. Even the first negation speaker is expected to have some level of refutation. By the fourth speaker in the round, refutation should be deeply embedded in a speech. Namedropping does not count as refutation. If you do not fully explain the links in your refutation argument then it was not a complete refutation.

2) Extension. If a previous speaker has acknowledged an argument already and you are choosing to expand upon it, you need to mention that previous speaker. If you do not recognize previous speakers for their arguments, I will assume you weren't paying attention or you are attempting to rehash. Extensions done well are impressive. Ignoring previous speakers to seem original or giving the same point twice is not.

3) Logical argumentation. It goes without saying but make good arguments. Consider the context of your contention and the scope of its impacts. I have no qualm ranking a debater who makes great arguments that I personally don't believe in. I will not rank a debater who has a poorly designed argument, even if I love the idea.

4) Engagement. One expectation of congressional debaters is engagement with the room. When refuting or extending upon previous speakers you should make eye contact and face them. During questioning do not give a miniature version of your speech or ask questions completely unrelated. You need to show me that you are engaged in their argument and how it relates to the scope of the whole round. Being passionate in questioning is great, so long as you are allowing the speaker to answer. I understand this is challenging with an online format, but I will still expect debaters to be engaging to the extent it is possible.

5) Speaking style. I don't have a strong preference for jokes versus serious speakers. I do, however, care that you are expressing yourself (while role-playing a member of congress) in your speech. Have passion and be genuinely invested in your arguments. If you are a funny person, crack a joke, in a respectful manner. If not, totally fine as well. I'm not judging you on your personality but no one likes a boor.

6) Moving the chamber along. If the bill is ready to move to previous question and there are five more speakers who will continue what is already stale rehash, it is not insensitive to call for the motion. Unless you are very intentionally screwing over an individual debater, I will not hold calling motions (whether they pass or not) against you.

7) For POs: Run the room. POs, I expect that you keep order in the chamber. Debaters cannot have group conversations unless they are in a recess; don't let them start negotiating sides in the round between speeches. As long as you are being fair, sticking to procedure, and reminding the chamber if they are not, I will reward your sacrifice to preside. I care quite a bit about following proper procedure so if you don’t actually know how to PO don’t expect me to rank you as a PO.

8) Flipping/recess. If you flip sides to save the round and need a recess, I'm totally for it. Adaptability is crucial for a debater. I've been in that position before and understand the pressure. For recesses in general, figuring out splits and avoiding this situation is ideal, but I know that it isn't always realistic. I'd prefer to take the recess and have a debater flip than prematurely move a bill to previous question when there is still valid debate to be had.

9) Have fun! I did congressional debate for four years (and keep coaching now) because I love it! Tournaments are stressful but they are also great places to make friends from around the country and voice your opinions on real-world issues. It isn't hard to tell which debaters love to be in round, even if they are stressed, and which are terrified. I encourage all of my students to let go of the tension and let the moment of their speech absorb them. You are always performing better than you think and I swear judges are not out to get you. Debaters who let loose and have fun are the ones who break to out rounds and feel good about their performance! I love judging because you are all such talented individuals and being part of your competitive experience brings me so much joy.

10) During rounds, I will write detailed feedback on your ballots. That being said, if you ever want more feedback or have questions at the end of a round, I am happy to talk. Just let me know and we can chat about the round and your performance.

Best of Luck! Sorry for the long paradigm but I know I always wished judges were explicit with what they wanted!

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers (feel free to share yours in round!)

School Affiliation: I attended and competed at Claremont High School from 2016-2020. I am now a senior at Chapman University with a double major in Psychology and Sociology and a minor in the Honors Program.

I participated in speech and debate for 9 years during elementary, middle, and high school and have experience in a few events. I competed on both the California state and national circuit for Congress throughout high school, but off and on I participated in Parli, PuFo, and Policy. I also competed in other debate events like World Schools and Big Questions. For IE's I mostly did spontaneous events (Impromptu and International Extemp), but I have done a few prepared original speeches and have experiencing judging all types of speech.

With that being said, I don't enjoy most theory, spreading, or K's. I can follow some speed and understand basic theory (i.e. Topicality arguments), but please use that all sparingly with me. Evidence is important to a debate, but so is clash! I would like to emphasize that being rude to your opponent will never be tolerated and speaker points will be docked if you're blatantly bullying others in round (I hope I don't have to remind y'all of this, but homophobia, transphobia, sexism, racism, ableism, etc. will not be tolerated in round!!).

If there's an e-mail chain - add me to it! Just let me know at the start of the round and I'd be more than happy to provide my e-mail. If your case is going to involve sensitive topics that could be triggering to others, trigger warnings will always be encouraged and accepted in any round I judge. I also encourage and appreciate people sharing their pronouns in order to create an inclusive environment for all.

Regarding speaker points, I enjoy when speakers are clear and persuasive. There's not much to say there, just do your best! In the end, I hope we are all ready to create a fun, safe, and overall educational round.

Hi there,

My name is Alex Gordon -- I competed in Congressional Debate for 4 years at the Dreyfoos School of the Arts in West Palm Beach, FL. I debated a decent amount nationally, placing 3rd in Senate at NSDA Nationals my senior year, and ranked well at a few other tournaments over the years. I am now a sophomore at Yale University, where I compete in parliamentary debate.

I judge congress rounds holistically, preferring the best overall legislator over the best orator, best debater, etc. That said, here are a few things you may want to consider in reference to how I evaluate speakers:

1. If you are disrespectful, rude, or violate decorum, I will refuse to rank you, no matter how good your speeches are.

2. Feel free to use humor, but always make sure you are taking the competition seriously and with respect.

3. Don't be afraid to take risks. I reward creativity and unique argumentation and styles.

4. I am fine with speed, but some judges are not, so check their paradigms, too. Also, make sure your computer can handle speed through Zoom, too. The last thing I want is to not understand what you are saying as a result of the technology

5. Every speech after the first affirmative should have refutation. There is no excuse not to, because that just shows you are not listening to your fellow representatives.

6. Please have warrants! I should not be left asking "Why" or "How" after you make your argument. Also, please do not rehash.

7. Please do not say, "According to the New York Times" and move on. Provide a name and/or date with sources, if possible.

8. Be passionate. Show me why I should not only care about your side of the debate, but about your particular argument and why it is the most important in the round. Connect to the humanity of debate -- paint a narrative of what will or will not happen as a result of the vote. Make me want to vote for you and your side.

9. Have fun. Show off your personality.

As a final note, I want to say how inspiring it is to see you all still dedicated to the activity and willing to put the time into competing this weekend. I know there is a lot going on in people's lives, and debate can oftentimes be a stress-inducing activity. If at any point you just need a break, or need to leave and get a glass of water, always feel free to take care of yourself first.

Be well, and be kind to one another.

Alex

Please feel free to contact me at alexgordon003@gmail.com with any questions.

LD:

If you seem like you are having fun and not making the round a terrible place to be, I will listen to pretty much any argument that isn't intentionally obnoxious or repugnant (death good, racial equity bad, etc.). I prefer lines of argument that don't rely on nuclear war or extinction, but if your case is strong, go for it. Creativity and experimental arguments are awesome. Please run them.

Clash and analysis are key. Use your case to analyze and refute your opponent's arguments. Don't just toss out cards; explain WHY and HOW. If your logic/reasoning is sound, you don't need to extend every card to win. I prefer strategic condensing over shallow line by line rebuttal.

Fairness - Theory arguments about fairness in LD are, by and large, arguments debaters fall back on when they don't know their opponent's literature well enough to engage with it. Running fairness while spreading or engaging in other behaviors that exclude people from debate is unlikely to get my ballot.

K's - I thoroughly enjoy critical debate. It fits very well with the intent of LD and forces debaters to examine assumptions. Logic must be sound and you should make a concerted effort to use the conceptual framework of your K as the basis for your argumentation (i.e. don't read "We can't draw conceptual lines between people," and then respond to case with arguments that draw lines between peoples). I have a pretty high threshold for what is topical so be prepared to engage with your opponent's lit. I don't enjoy rounds that devolve to T.

Phil - Critical arguments are based on differing philosophical views of the world. The phil authors we roll our eyes at today were often the radicals of their times. I find the debate community's distinction between Phil & K debate silly to the point of absurd and based on an incredibly reductive idea of who counts as a philosopher.

Performance - Go ahead, just make sure you have clear link stories.

Make sure you weigh your impacts for me. I may have a different perspective so if you don't make the weighing explicit, you are leaving it up to my interpretation. This includes ROBs, etc.

I expect timers and flashing to work without much delay. Having issues more than once in a round will lose speaks.

My speaks start at 28 for circuit tournaments. I'll dock a varsity debater more often for nonsense or rudeness than a JV debater. Making me laugh is a good way to bump up your points a few tenths. Enunciation is also a bonus.

I studied linguistics. If you are going to talk about plurals and indefinite articles, please have read more of the article than just the card you are citing.

CX is important and clarifies for me how well you understand your own arguments. I will dock points for badgering novices. Kindness is never the wrong move.

**Virtual debate notes: WiFi strength is not universal. Audio lags make it CRUCIAL that you speak clearly and don't talk over each other.

Speed/Spread:

I don't mind speed, as long as you are clear. I will only call "clear" twice in a varsity round. Taglines, authors, and card interp should be noticeably slower. It is up to the speaker to communicate their arguments and be aware of the audience's attention level. Language has a natural rhythm. Using that to assist you will make you easier to understand than cutting all the linking words out of your cards.

**Virtual debate notes: if I can't follow your speed on a video chat, getting those extra two cards in doesn't matter. Strategy has to adapt to the medium.

Congress:

I evaluate the full participation of the chamber, from docket maneuvers to quality and variety of questions. Successful legislators are those who drive the debate, present new/unique arguments, extend/refute/deepen previous arguments, choose sources carefully, and use parliamentary procedure appropriately. Debate on the merits/flaws of the specific legislation is given more weight than general issue arguments. Delivery style can enhance the persuasiveness of your analysis, but will not make up for canned speeches, poor supporting materials, or rehashed arguments.

POs are an essential part of the chamber. They set the mood, pace, and attitude of the chamber. It is a risk, and that is taken to account when I score. POs with a good pace and no major errors are very likely to be ranked.

Note on authorships/first pros: The price for establishing recency is that your speech must provide some background for the debate and at least one reason why this legislation in particular is/is not the answer.

Evidence

The purpose of evidence in all forms of debate is to support your arguments with expert testimony, not to BE your arguments. I will only ask for cards if something sounds exceptionally wonky. Have some understanding of the bias of your sources (Are they all from conservative think tanks?, etc.). It is generally up to your opponent(s) to point out blatantly wrong evidence, but I will dock for egregious offenses.

I am an experienced speech and Congress coach, and a former competitor.

In Congress, I value respect and courtesy, delivery, an analysis of real-world impacts, evidence and clash - so unless you are the first speech, you need to show me that you are listening and responding to the other speeches in the round. I don't want to hear the same arguments restated and rehashed at the end of the round - give me some new ideas, or some summative analysis. Even if you give a fantastically delivered and well cited speech, if you aren't trying to ask good questions at every opportunity throughout the round, I'm not going to rank you highly. It is, after all, a debate event.

In Lincoln Douglas and in other styles of debate, please don't treat debate like a game. I am very traditional, and treating it like a game with progressive argumentation, performance Ks, K Affs, and RVIs harms those in small schools who don’t have the advantage of many team members to teach them the game, and it creates more inequities in debate. I listen carefully, write down excessive amounts of information and I vote off my flow so if you want my ballot, give a strong final speech that addresses, crystallizes and weighs the key arguments in the round. Show that you were listening to and have evidence to counter arguments presented by your opponent(s). These speeches demonstrate your ability to think and interact with your opponents’ case, much more so than your ability to read a prepared case, that you may or may not have written yourself. Don’t spread. If I can’t understand what you are saying, I can’t flow your case. And no one spreads in real life. Off time road maps are a waste of time. Just as a good extemp speaker should not have to read me the prompt before they start the speech, I should be able to follow your road map within your speech.

In all debate events, and in life, the most important thing is to be kind.

JUDGE PARADIGM

Occupation:

Samsung CRM Manager

School Affiliations:

Dougherty Valley High School

Years of Judging/Event Types:

No years of judging, will judge the Congressional Debate.

How will you award speaker points to the debaters?

• Fluency

• Clarity

• Volume

• Eye Contact

• Emphasis on necessary or important statistics

• Appropriate hand gestures

What sort of things help you to make a decision at the end of the debate?

The overall delivery of a one’s speech helps me make a final decision.

Do you take a lot of notes or flow the debate?

I have not judged before, but I’m planning to take notes on the aspects I’m going to judge them on, including the content of their speech.

Rank each using the following rubric: 1 - not at all 5-somewhat 10- weighed heavily

Speaking skills: 7

Use of Evidence: 8

Cross Examination: 6

Real World Impacts: 9

Debate skill over truthful arguments: 5

Use of Evidence:

• Cite the sources, say at least the author and date.

• Statistics is highly recommended

• Relevant pieces of evidence must be incorporated.

Real World Impacts:

• How it will affect all people

• Weighing is very important

• Why is your stance in the debate important? Why does it matter?

Cross Examination:

• Speakers must be fluent and give relevant answers.

• Ask a lot of questions, but useful ones.

• Make eye to eye contact during one on one cross examination.

Debate skill over truthful arguments:

• Must be fact based

• On topic, don’t drift off to other topics.

For Congressional Debate:

To judge the merits of evidence, I look to the links and warrants given to me. If there are competing links and warrants that are logically explained and also backed up by evidence, I consider the frameworks given to me. If there are competing frameworks and none are clearly superior, or if none are given, then I will weigh the frameworks and links myself. If only one acceptable framework is provided, even if there are significant holes, I will use that to judge the debate.

I also highly value impacting out evidence, and weighing them against each other. What I do not want to see is a complete defensive position where speakers refuse to acknowledge the merits of opposing arguments and simply try to win by throwing back more/ "better" evidence. Admit when your opponents raise a valid concern, and feel free to attack them back by going for the links and other weak areas in their argumentation instead of just denying or ignoring their evidence. I value offensive arguments higher than defensive arguments.

I believe Congressional debate should also partly be judged on speaking, and so I will look for things like an intro, conclusion, and other stylistic elements that will help me rank speakers higher against their peers with comparable quality of argumentation.

References to how awesome the blue devils are and how terrible UNC is will get a clap.

Hi! I did a lot of Congress and Worlds for over 4 years and compete in college APDA now. Basically, be super clear, do A LOT of weighing, and tell me exactly why I should vote for you. I'm not super big on theory and I need to see cards/evidence for your arguments.

Don't be rude! Have fun in the round!

hey y'all!

tldr: former congressional debater with strong priority on content and engaging with the round. my 1 goes to whoever answers why your side's world is better than the other's. please be respectful and have fun!

i'm Rohit (he/him/his). i competed in congressional debate for 4 years and am now the assistant congress coach at James Logan High School, as well as a co-owner and coach at Ascend Speech and Debate. i hope my paradigm is relatively straightforward, but if you do have any questions please feel free to ask me them before the round!

my ranks are pretty heavily determined by the content of your speech. your speaking and presentation need to be good enough to where i can clearly understand what you're saying and i think you're presenting it in an effective manner, but from there the majority of the distinction between speakers on my ballot will be based on what was said and not how it was said. that being said, particularly eloquent speakers will get an extra boost from me and ineffective ones will get a lower rank, so it makes sense to give the best speeches you can. plus, it's good practice for the real world where how you say things is often the most important.

case wise, i look for well structured arguments that are easy to follow and have strong backing. this means i should be able to clearly isolate the logical warrant behind the argument, and you should be able to defend the argument based upon its logic alone. moreover, i should be able to point to the evidence as credible supplementary material that helps reinforce your logic, and ideally adds new depth to your argument. finally, it should be clear to me why your argument is important in regards to the real world impacts it has, and the more specific you are here about what exactly it looks like in the picture you're painting, the better it is.

the most important thing to get a good rank from me is engaging with the round. everything you say, from your rhetoric to your arguments to your cross-x, should have a purpose in terms of showing me why your side's world is better than the other's. try to answer questions that are defining the round and resolve issues that are being contested. i think turns and weighing are the two most effective forms of interaction in congress, yet also the most slept on, so please use these! i expect everyone after the sponsor to interact with other speakers' arguments, and moreover i expect you to tell me why this interaction matters in the ultimate context of whose side is better in the debate.

the final thing i'll say is to make sure you are respectful and have fun! a lot of people in this activity forget that debate is an extracurricular just like any other, and so it should be a welcoming space for everyone to come and enjoy their time in. obviously you'll have stressful moments, but try to balance them out with making sure you're enjoying yourself and finding tournaments fulfilling. they will fly by much faster than you know it.

anyways, thanks for reading all that and i look forward to being your judge!

Hello competitors!!

My name is Francis (Sae-Rom) Kim,

I am a parent and an assistant coach at Redlands High School, have been judging Congress for about 6 years now, and I am very excited to see all the amazing, talented speakers today.

As a judge, I evaluate the "Best Legislator" in the chamber based on a demonstration of various skills, not just speaking. I often use the congressional debate rubric chart. This means I evaluate basic skills as well as participation in setting the agenda, making motions, asking questions, as well as content, argumentation, refutation, flow and delivery. Most importantly, I'm looking for effort, passion, and consistent participation in the round. Just because you gave a good speech doesn't mean you get an automatic good rank. You need to show you are engaged with the chamber. Also being a well rounded debater is very important for me. During rounds, I want to see a variety of type of speeches, and ability to switch sides, and flex to what the round demands. Any speech after the first cycle should be referencing other speakers in the round and you should be utilizing refutation. Arguments are claims backed by reasons that are supported by evidence. Providing evidence is very important for me.

I will try to be as fair and just as possible, so enjoy the experience and be respectful during the round!!!

Thank you.

When judging I am looking for two key things; 1) originality of arguments, and 2) clarity of speech. Please do not just repeat the same points or simply agree with your fellow debaters. Originality will prove to me that you have done adequate research for the topic at hand. Furthermore, I heavily weigh the persuasion and clarity of your speech. A well thought out and concise speech will put you at the top of my list. I also view the questioning period (if one exists) as a time to prove that you have done your research and can confidently address any challenge to your arguments.

My biggest pet peeve, while judging any event, is disrespectful or rude behavior. Do not confuse being assertive with being aggressive. Respect others while they are speaking - do not make talk to other debaters while someone else is speaking, leave the room in the middle of someone's speech, or do any thing else that would disrespect or distract your opponent. We're all here to have fun and learn, don't forget that!

I judge on how well you are organized, how well you support your points, how well you refute your opponent's points, and your speaking skills.

My history: Congress for 4 years during high school, won local tournaments, went to Nats twice. POed quite a bit. I'm currently a Congress coach. Most of my expertise is Congress, but I have a good handle on LD and PF.

LD: Two things that matter the most: being able to weigh impacts and show me why your value has better positive impacts than the value of your competitor, and speaking at an understandable pace. You can go fast, but if I can't understand you then I can't rank you well. Content means more to me than style.

PF: Show me good research and sourcing and prove that you know the topic very well. I appreciate having some emotional appeals within a speech. I also appreciate teams that work together well--thus, I will not penalize prompting.

Congress:

Delivery.I listen for variance in speaking pace and tone/emotion. My personal pet peeves are bad posture and overgesturing.

Evidence.I listen for good sources and recent years to make sure that the evidence is current. Having evidence is important, but you won't get extra points for overwhelming me with quotes or numbers--your analysis of the evidence is more important.

Analysis.Proving that your impacts are the most important and should be valued over other arguements in the debate is what I weigh most heavily. Try to bring unique arguments. I appreciate clash and directly weighing your analysis against what other speakers have said.

Decorum.I don't expect any problems with this, but show respect to everyone in the chamber.

Good luck! Can't wait to see you debate.

I've been judging for more than 12 years now. I've been helping to coach for more than 3 years. I competed in speech and debate in high school. I know how to do all of the events.

Policy: I very much dislike when the debate goes off into theory arguments for policy. Most of the time they aren't even actual arguments that have been fully formed with all the necessary attributes. Those arguments will be crossed out on my flow. If you can't fully form the argument and have all the parts to it then why should I care to have it as a voting issue? I don't mind reasonable speed. If you breathe anywhere where there isn't punctuation then I will completely cross that card/argument from my flow. That is my biggest annoyance with speed. I lean very strongly towards Policy maker but I'm a stock coms judge. I will always weigh the arguments with stock issues more heavily than I will the other issues. Topicality will be weighed over it when it's actually reasonable. I want a clear shift of policy with the Aff case. IF YOU SAY THEY DIDN'T ADDRESS AN ISSUE THAT THEY DEFINITELY HAVE I WILL VOTE YOU DOWN FOR WHINING, INCOMPETENT FLOWING, AND BEING ANNOYING!

LD: I very much love the Value and Criterion debate. I love traditional debate. I HATE progressive debate you lose a lot of the skills you would normally learn and gain weak skills instead. Give me clear reasons why we should weight the round off of your Value. Both logic and evidence based arguments have their place in this debate. Make sure you use them accordingly. I will drop the entire argument you're making if you breathe where there isn't any punctuation. I'm fine with reasonable speed. IF YOU SAY THEY DIDN'T ADDRESS AN ISSUE THAT THEY DEFINITELY HAVE I WILL VOTE YOU DOWN FOR WHINING, INCOMPETENT FLOWING, AND BEING ANNOYING!

SPEECH:

So, I WILL NOT, emphasis on the NOT, judge a piece that has, or should have, a trigger warning in it. I will leave the round immediately if someone tries to run one in my round. Pieces can be very good without getting to the point where there needs to be a trigger warning. I will not judge those garbage pieces. Increase your quality of speeches by getting rid of those.

I'm a parent judge. Speak slowly and clearly and give me clear reasons like voting issues about why I should vote for you. I won't vote off an argument I don't understand.

Tanya Mahadwar

Coach, Dougherty Valley HS, San Ramon CA

Coached Congress & Extemp: 4 years

Add me to the email chain --> mahadwart@gmail.com

General Debate Paradigm:

Background:

1. I evaluate debate on frameworks. I just find it really easy to weigh differing arguments both teams present if there's some standard to consider for the round. Do some weighing, because that shows you understand the opposing team's arguments and are able to critically respond to and interact with them. The more impact calculus you do, the better.

2. Generally, my norm for speaker points is a 28.5. I'll drop you if I feel you're not responsive to the other team's arguments, fluency is bad to the point where I don't know what you're saying, or if you're being disrespectful. I'll give you more if I think you're presenting your case well and fluency is good. You can speak fast, just slow down for the tags. If you start spreading I may not be able to keep up - I'll yell clear if I think it's getting to that point.

3. I am a very traditional flow judge. Feel free to run theory/Ks, just please make sure you explain things well if you choose to.

Congress:

1. Adaptability is important. If you have a mix of parents and flow judges on your panel, you need to be flexible. This means dropping the jargon, explaining the link chain well, and using language to tell a story. In the same vein, adaptability also means rigorous in-round interaction. Are you questioning people on relevant blocks? Are you incorporating refutation into your mid-cycle speeches? Are you crystallizing in your late-round speeches? These are important questions to consider when writing/delivering your arguments.

2. Evidence. Generally, if you're using blocks to refute someone else's evidence, it needs to be from (at most) the last 2 years. However, if you're simply using evidence to explain a definition/phenomenon, further back is fine. If there are refutations on competing evidence (i.e. "Senator X said this isn't true, however, according to...") I'm going to defer to the better-established link chain. I'm judging not on who has the better evidence, but on who uses their evidence better to build a link chain. I'm going to check any biases, so feel free to run whatever kind of argument you want (barring anything sexist/racist/ableist/classist/homophobic, etc.)

3. Talk about the bill!!! I feel like this gets lost in a lot of rounds these days, and it's super important to bring in the legislation whenever possible. You're not debating the idea of something, but rather the specific implementation of that policy. Talk about the funding/enforcement mechanism, pull apart the bill's faulty definitions, tell me why this specific legislation is (un)ideal for whatever reality you're fighting for.

Finally, I know these are incredibly challenging and stressful times. I respect all of you for taking the time to compete this weekend. If you need any accommodations (within reason), please feel free to ask! We are here to support you however you need. Good luck!

I take a holistic approach to judging debates - the winner will be the person/team that has the most convincing overall presentation. The quality of the reasoning and the evidence used to support contentions carries more weight than the number of contentions. I do flow and will consider the failure to refute or address a significant point to be a basis for giving the win to the other team. A minor point that flows through will rarely be a determinant of the outcome.

You will likely lose if you make unsupported assertions; make up or misrepresent facts; or abuse your opponent or the process. The likelihood of winning are greatly enhanced if you are able to clearly rebut your opponent's voters and emphatically point out why your contentions should prevail.

I am a parent judge, and I have some experience with judging congress, LD, public forum, policy, and parliamentary debate. I have been judging for less than 2 years, and I don't know all the rules about these events.

Please speak slowly and clearly, and don't use too much debate jargon. I evaluate rounds based on what you convince me to evaluate, so please clarify this.

Good luck! If you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the round.

The following paradigm was written a couple years ago but still rings true, however I want to preface that I've been out of the loop since 2019, so if there are any new catch-words or jargon I may not be completely on top of that, just so you know!

Former Debater, 4 years, am familiar with both lay and circuit styles of PuFo and LD, and I prefer a style that lies somewhere in the middle (probably a little closer to lay, if I'm being honest). If you construct a superior logical and rhetorical argument than your opponent and effectively communicate that to me, you're going to win the debate. I weight framework heavily, especially in LD. Tie everything back to what you're asking me to weigh the round on for the best results.

I'll be flowing the debate but don't expect me to weigh the debate on an issue if you don't touch on that issue during your final speech. Use the first three speeches to win the debate, use the last speech to tell me WHY you won the debate.

I am a former debate coach and debate tab staffer at many regional and circuit-level tournaments in California. I competed in student congress and have actively coached congress, speech (e.g., oratory or platform events), LD, and public forum debate. I competed from 2006 to 2008, coached from 2008 to 2013, and tabbed from 2011 to 2022. My specialty is in tabbing and evaluating TOC-level congressional debate rounds.

Outside of speech and debate, I have my PhD in Social Psychology. I focus on group identities and how it affects our thoughts and behaviors. Between that and my other professional experiences, my view of speech and debate has now become focused on the communication of information and logical arguments for an audience.

Here is how this has affected my perspectives of debate rounds:

1. Do not actively harm anyone else in the debate round. Personal attacks, ad hominem arguments, or similar actions detract from the speech and debate experience. If you engage in any behavior that actively harms yourself or a competitor, I will give the win to your opponent and immediately let tab staff know of your behavior.
   
   Think about what you plan to say or do before you say and do it. This can often lead to a better round and less potential for unintentional outcomes from a round. This can also help identify biases within ourselves and each other that affect what we do and do not perceive or how our words and actions can affect others. I am trying to learn how my biases influence how I see the world, and I hope you take time to do so as well.
2. Any argument that you want to run that does not actively harm yourself or your opponent works for me. This includes traditional and progressive arguments. Importantly, any argument that you want to run is fine with me if you can explain the argument in simple English. Tell me why your argument is relevant and matters in the round, and I will evaluate it. Arguments filled with excessive jargon without an attempt to explain it in simple English will likely be ignored.
3. Debate is inherently an activity based on value judgements. Arguments that focus on an empiric as the take-home point (e.g., we save x more lives than our opponents or save x more money than our opponents) do not inherently have value by itself. You need to tell me why your evidence and analysis matters (e.g., overall, our side allows us to achieve something we value or avoid something that we do not value). Tell me what matters, and tell me why I should weigh it above your opponents' case. On average, I will value plausible evidence more than implausible examples. As an aside, extinction arguments will usually be ignored and excluded from my flow if it is irrelevant to the topic.
4. It is up to you to convince me as a judge that your evidence is (1) valid and (2) relevant to the round. Sensationalist or inflammatory arguments or evidence that do not add to the overall logic or arguments of the round will be ignored completely (e.g., they will not make my flow sheet). It is your responsibility to ensure that your argument is (a) not sensationalist, (b) not inflammatory, and (c) relevant to the round
5. I do not support the game theory of spreading. Communication matters. Information processing speed in working memory capacity matters. Short-term memory matters. Physical or mental obstacles to hearing or encoding information matters.
   
   I will defer to Cowan's (2001) analysis of short-term memory, which states that a person can remember about 4 chunks of information in short-term memory. In practice, this means that I--as well as every other judge you encounter--will remember somewhere around 4 chunks of information within each speech. You are better off developing four well-developed chunks than spreading across multiple points in a constructive speech and then collapsing from many arguments into few arguments.
   
   What this means in practice is this: If you propose three to four general advantages/disadvantages, contentions, or reasons why I should support your side and realize that two of those points should be promoted by you and your team, then collapsing to those two chunks makes sense and is a good strategy to do. If you propose more than one chunk per minute (or more) so that there is no way for your opponent to respond, and then collapse after your opponent had a chance to address your case overall? That is not equitable and I will likely call out that strategy.
   
   Do not spread. Speed is okay, but spreading will receive low speaker points. Furthermore, I will be very open to hearing and voting for a critique that says the opponent is spreading too fast, which inherently makes the activity more exclusionary and harmful to competitors and observers within speech and debate.
6. Most debates focus on a specific topic or point. Although it is a tactic to focus on a specific aspect of the debate, concede that point after much of the round has passed, and then state “I concede the point that we spent much of the round that we discussed while still winning on the rest of my case that my opponent has overlooked,” I find that to be a very cheap debate tactic that does not have much real world applicability. If you and your opponent explicitly or implicitly focus on a specific point or area of contention within a round, I will decide my ballot based on that point or contention.
7. Specific to LD: I need a value. Morality is not a value, as groups define what it means to be moral (Ellemers et al., 2013). I need to know a specific value that you think I should promote or prefer in the round.
   
   Utilitarianism is a value, but you need to tell me why this value should be preferred over other values in the round. Stating that your value is utilitarianism and that your value criterion/plan/whatever is a cost-benefit analysis may or may not win you the round, but I will likely not give more than 27 speaker points in the round to a competitor who proposes this CV/VC or defaults to this CV/VC.
8. Specific to Congressional Debate: You may have noticed that I said I competed in student congress but evaluate congressional debate rounds in my introduction. That is intentional. Congressional debate has grown into a multifaceted event with nuanced arguments regarding policy and societal proposals and implications. Assume that my rankings is based on diversity of skills (e.g., can you give multiple types of speeches), essentialism within the round (e.g., what was your holistic effect within the round, or how would the round be different if you were not in the round), and quality of novel arguments and argument advancement during debate on a topic.
   
   I rank presiding officers and know how to evaluate them based on 2 years of being a presiding officer and 14 years of evaluating student congress and congressional debate rounds.
   
   All things being equal, I rank students lowly who only give crystallization speeches within the round. The goal of congressional debate is to advance discussion on a topic. There are many ways to do so (e.g., sponsorship, early-cycle extension speeches, summary and late-cycle extension speeches, and crystallization speeches). All speeches have value, but I prefer students who show diversity in their speech types when possible. When diversity is not possible, I need to know how your speech extends an argument above and beyond summarizing what was previously discussed. Often, crystallization speeches summarize events without extending discussions. In rounds where it is possible for all speakers to give two speeches, I rate students who choose to only give crystallization speeches lower.

Overall, I hope you have fun, communicate clearly, use valid and relevant evidence effectively, and be respectful of yourselves, your opponents, and the community. We all showed up because this is something that we enjoy. Treat others with the respect you hope to be treated with, and I will do my best to treat everyone with respect throughout the round.

quest.sandel@ascendspeech.org for any and all questions. Please CC your coach if you reach out with a question. This paradigm is written for Congressional Debate.

Hey,

I am the Founder/Camp Director/Co-Owner at Ascend Speech & Debate, Director of Congressional Debate at James Logan High School, and former Director of Speech and Debate at John F. Kennedy High School in Sacramento, California.

First off, I believe this is a debate event before anything. That means you should be adapting to the round as it goes. Everyone from the sponsor to the closer has an equal shot at my one as long as they do their job. The job for the sponsor and first negative speaker is to set up the round for strong debate. The sponsor should state the problem, how this bill fixes the problem, give one or two impacts from solving it, and if you're a superstar give me a framework for the round moving forward. The first negative should give us the main idea of what we should expect from a strong negation argument. This should take the problem the sponsor laid out and then give us the negative thought process on whether or not this legislation fixes it. After that I should see an increasing amount of refutations mixed with original arguments as to why this legislation is good or bad. Once we are 3/4 of the way through I should be seeing a lot of extensions as the debate is coming to an end. Still give an original POV but keep it within the frame of the debate. At the end, I should see nothing but refutation and crystalized speeches. Once again I want your own original analysis but use it to end the debate through a refutation of the other side instead of individuals. No matter where you speak I want to see your personality/style shine through. Take risks and you'll likely be rewarded.

All effective argumentation is based around a solid understanding of the status quo. If you cant properly depict the status quo then I cant buy an argument from you. What's happening right now? Is the effect that this legislation has on it good or bad? How well you answer these questions will dictate your ranking from me.

Effective cross examination is when you attack the flaws in your opponents argument or set up refutations for your own. As long as you have a clear goal for your cross examination period, I'll appreciate your time. Overall, I tune out when both sides start over talking each other and I prefer a calmer style of cross x.

When it comes to speaking I don't have a preferred style. I can respect all styles as long as it suits you. Picking a speaking style is like picking a baseball batting stance in that there isn't a wrong way as long as you're doing what is best for you based on your natural voice, range, and variation. If you stick to that then I'll probably think you're a great speaker. DONT BE AFRAID TO TAKE RISKS.

I do rank presiding officers pretty well as a scorer and if I'm a parli it can serve as a tie breaker between two debaters. If you do it well then I'll boost you but if you don't then I'll drop you pretty far.

This next part should go without saying but your arguments need to be backed by evidence at all times and have clear logic behind them. Remember that your logic creates the argument then the evidence backs it up. Your evidence isn't your argument.

Lastly, be respectful and have fun. If you aren't having fun then you're doing this activity wrong. Best of luck!

I’ve been Involved with Speech and Debate since 2015, although I’ve been judging almost nonstop since 2019. Available as a judge-for-hire via HiredJudge per request.

9.9/10 if you did not receive commentary on your ballot after the tournament, you (hopefully) would get my judge email on there instead.

I don’t currently operate from a laptop so my ballot speed is not ideal atm; I’m usually typing out paragraphs from a doc until the last allowable minute, but my timing is not the most perfect. You won’t always get a pageful but its my personal policy to give a minimum of 5 sentences. If you send over an email asking about your round; it might take up to 24 hours post tournament but I -will- reply back.

_____

Ballot Style:

Where possible I add timestamps to help students pinpoint exact moments in their speech that address the issue as noted by comment.it is a personal philosophy of mine to try never have less than 5 sentences on any ballot.

Debate Philosophy: I can comfortably judge parli, LD, PF, SPAR & Congress due to judging almost nonstop since the start of the pandemic. I don't have a lot of experience with policy debate as of this writing, I’m working on understanding spread speak as I do more tournaments. [current speed: 2 notches down from the fast verse in Rap God ]

I LOVE it when students are able to be fully themselves and have fun in a round
Debate Judging: I’m not the biggest fan of utilitarian as a value metric, but otherwise I try to approach the round as a blank slate. I like hearing both Ks & Traditional Argumentation however my rfd really depends on how you use them (or inverse thereof) in the debate.

Sportsmanship (like, dont lower your performance/ be rude on purpose, please) > Argumentative Cohesion & Organization > CX utilization & Clash > Framework Discourse > Delivery > Structural Presence, but I am a little stricter on citation~ doesn’t need to be the full date but it needs gotta be there

Congress: (also see above) but I like those who can flip arguments in their favor;You dont need to be extroverted to be PO, but POs should be attentive with overall energy in the chamber and facilitating ethical and intentional inclusion beforesilence becomes a huge issue in round, in addition to strict yet -visible- timekeeping.

RFD FLOW - I try to have at least a paragraph summary explaining my flow (sometimes it’ll be copy/pasted)

Speech Judging: I can judge any speech event across all levels!

I would sincerely appreciate if students could self time so I can focus on ballots.

(For those who have read all the way through, some free interp gems that will be erased in a month, besides the basics: storyboarding, stop animation, pixar’s “inside out,” samurai jack, sound track your pieces.)

I am a parent judge. Speak slowly and clearly and give coherent points for your argument.